A woman expecting twins received some unexpected news

By Nicolette Weet, Oct 16, 2017

This couple was preparing to welcome their twins into the world when they received some surprising news. Most couples are very excited when they find out that they are expecting a baby and they cannot wait to share the news with their family and friends. It often marks a new chapter in their lives as they prepare to become parents and raise their child into adolescence and adulthood. Raising a child comes along with many exciting and new milestones and adds a lot of meaning and joy into the lives of couples. Having a little baby can change your life for the better and most people would do anything for their child. But what if the doctor told you that you were not just having one baby but two? That is exactly what one woman experienced after she received news that she was pregnant with twins after trying to conceive for years.

After Danielle Thrasher found out she was carrying twins, she along with her partner were very excited to become the parents to two new babies. They began preparing to bring their twins home and adjusting to their new life. Danielle and her partner had dreamed of having children for years but their dream seemed to be very far away as they were struggling to conceive. So when they received the good news that Danielle was expecting twins, they were very excited. Everything seemed to be going well after their first doctor’s visit until Danielle began to experience some pain. They did not think anything of it, however, everything was not as it seemed after she went for a routine ultrasound. It was revealed that there was something that was not what they were expecting.

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They were in love

Danielle Thrasher and her boyfriend Joseph Odom are from a small city in Indiana and were very much in love. They had been dating for a while and the two knew that they were right for each other and they were planning on getting married as soon as they saved enough money. Until their wedding was possible they were both working hard and enjoying their life together when they received some exciting news.

Full-time job

Danielle was especially busy as she was a full-time student as well as working a full-time job in the field of childcare. While she was juggling her busy lifestyle, Danielle was dreaming of one day becoming a mother. In 2015 she wanted to make her dream a reality and she and her boyfriend began trying to conceive a child. The couple desperately wanted to become parents, however, their journey to parenthood was not an easy one.

Dissapointment

For two long years, the couple were unable to conceive a child and they struggled through the devastating world of infertility. After many disappointing pregnancy test results, Danielle and Joseph were beginning to get frustrated at having failure after failure. They were beginning to give up hope when everything change. In March of 2017 it seemed as though their bad luck had turned.

Exciting news

Danielle and Joseph finally got some good news in 2017 when the pregnancy test came back with a positive result! The couple were overjoyed at the news and they began to plan out how they would raise their bundle of joy. They were excited to begin shopping for their new baby’s nursery and their families were looking forward to welcoming a new arrival.

Supporting a family

However, both Danielle and Joseph had modest salaries but they thought that they would have enough to care for their child. The couple lived in a small one-bedroom apartment but they were content to raise the child there and they had recently purchased a new car which was perfect timing as they were now expecting a child. Danielle and Joseph were very excited to meet their new baby and start their lives as parents.

Abdominal pain

However, something was not quite right as a couple of weeks prior to discovering she was pregnant, Danielle experienced severe abdominal pain and six weeks later, she was still in pain. She went to the doctor where they decided to conduct an emergency ultrasound. Neither Danielle or Joseph could foresee what the results of the ultrasound would reveal. These parents to be were about to get some very unexpected but exciting news.

It was twins!

Danielle and Joseph who longed for a baby for years were about to welcome not one but two babies! Danielle and her boyfriend were both excited that were going to welcome two children into the world. However, it was not completely surprising as there are sets of twins in both Danielle and Joseph’s families. Danielle has twin brothers and she was excited to have another set of twins in the family.

Three babies!

While their heads were still spinning at the news that they would be having two babies, Danielle and Joseph got some additional news. Danielle’s doctor requested that she come in for a follow up ultrasound only one week later as pregnancies of multiples are generally more dangerous than an average pregnancy. The doctors wanted to make sure that the babies were doing well when they discovered that there were actually three babies not two!

Three times the fun

At this appointment, Danielle and Joseph really could not believe what they heard. They were expecting triplets! They were both completely stunned at the news and took a while to process it. Danielle revealed her husband’s surprise in an interview when she said, “It took him a good solid month to process all that.” The couple were so surprised by the news by they were extremely excited that their wish to have one child had come true and tripled!

Check ups

The expectant parents were finally coping with the idea that they were about to become the parents of three children when they received yet another piece of surprising news. The pair returned to the doctor for another ultrasound when Danielle was three months pregnant. Now that Danielle was expecting yet another child, frequent ultra sounds were necessary to make sure that all of the babies were healthy.

Something was wrong

However, something happened at this ultrasound appointment that neither of the two were prepared for. While the ultrasound technician was looking on the screen, she started getting a confused look on her face. Danielle and Joseph did not understand what was happening and began to think that something was not right until the technician said something they could not believe.

One more baby!

In yet another piece of surprising news it was revealed that Danielle was not carrying three babies. Danielle asked the sonographer what was wrong to which she replied, “I hate to tell you this but you are carrying four babies.” Danielle continued, “I turned to Joseph and stammered, ‘How are we going to do this?’ His response was so quick that I felt so reassured. ‘What’s one more baby, honey? We will do this together!’”

40% odds

The previous ultrasounds did not pick up all of the babies. It was only during this ultrasound that the fourth baby was found behind Danielle’s bellybutton. While both Danielle and Joseph were happy at the news that Danielle was pregnant with four babies, not everyone shared their feeling. Danielle’s doctor’s informed her that their children only had a 40% of all surviving the pregnancy and birth. This was not news that Joseph and Danielle thought they would hear.

Going against the doctor

Her doctors told Danielle that she should go through with a ‘selective reduction’ which means that they would terminate some of the children in her womb likely to just two. The doctor’s told Danielle and Joseph that this would ensure the health and safety of both the children and Danielle, however, Danielle and her boyfriend did not agree with the doctor’s opinion.

Not backing down

Neither Joseph or Danielle had any intentions of having less than four children. They explained to the doctors that they would not go through with the procedure and that they were prepared to have the quadruplets. “The nurse questioned me several times and I didn’t back down,” Thrasher recalled. “We were ready to let God take charge.” Joseph and Danielle could not bare the thought of losing any of their children so they decided to proceed with the pregnancy as it was.

Against all odds

While the odds of all of the babies surviving were low, Danielle and Joseph began preparing themselves to welcome four children into the world. The odds of conceiving four babies naturally without the use of fertilization treatments is around 1 in 700,000. As a result, Danielle and Joseph felt incredibly blessed that they had the opportunity to have quadruplets. After trying to have children for so long, their dreams were finally being realized.

No more work

Luckily for Danielle, her pregnancy was going smoothly especially since she was carrying four babies. After 23 weeks, her belly had gotten so big that she could no longer work. However, other than that she was perfectly health and was hoping that she could carry the babies until she hit 30-weeks. With pregnancies of multiples, women often deliver early so carrying the babies for 30-weeks, while premature was likely to occur.

Four little girls

However, Danielle to not make it to 30-weeks and she gave birth when she was 27 weeks pregnant. She had a medical scare two days before she gave birth as she developed pre-eclampsia and her blood pressure was very high. Danielle gave birth to her four babies, all girls. She and Joseph named them Maya, Arya, Lyla, and Zoey. Since they were very premature, none of the newborn’s weight over three pounds after the birth.

In the NICU

The girls were sent to the neonatal intensive care unit where they remained for over a month until they put on enough weight. During their stay in the NICU, the new parents began adjusting to their life with four children. With so many diapers and bottles for four little girls, one cannot imagine how hard it would be to go from no kids to four kids in one day. However, The new parents are taking it one day at a time.

Financial concerns

Danielle is still nervous about the financial aspect that comes with having four babies at the same time. She told a newspaper in 2017, “We have just kind of limited everything we used to do.” She continued, “With one, we thought we could do that and still be okay. With four, we really are going to try to buckle down.” The couple had to come up with a solution to ease their financial situation.

Funding their babies

Thankfully, many people were willing to help the family of six. Danielle set up a GoFundMe page to raise money in order to care for her four daughters. She wanted to raise ten-thousand dollars to put toward caring for her newborns. She explained to potential donors that he work was not giving her pay for maternity leave and that Joseph was working over 40 hours every week to afford the children.

Love is priceless

As of now, Danielle has raised over $2,500 for her daughters who were born in August of 2017. The girls are still in the hospital and doctors are waiting until they are strong enough to let them go home with their parents. Hopefully the girls will be able to go home in the near future but in the meantime, The girls’ parents are with them everyday and giving them love and attention. You can’t put a price tag on that.